Artists to perform at Hayner

TROY — Kun Dong and Benita Tse-Leung began their collaboration as a violin/piano duo in the fall of 2014 and have been well-received and critically acclaimed.

This collaboration has been described as a union of “imaginative colors” and “a collaboration of great unity.” The violin/piano duo have been featured in recitals in the United States, Macau (SAR) China, and an extensive tour to Taiwan that included performances in Taipei, Kao Hsiung and Tai Chung.

At 7:30 p.m. April 30, they will return to the Hayner for an encore performance for the Drawing Room Chamber Concert series.

Kun Dong began studying the violin under the tutelage of her father at the age of 5 and later continued her musical training at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music Preparatory School. A versatile performer, Kun Dong often appears as a soloist and as well as a chamber musician. Her numerous recitals have taken her to major cities in the U.S., Canada, her native China, and many European countries including Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, Germany, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, England and Russia. As a featured soloist, Kun Dong has performed with many orchestras including the Shanghai Radio Symphony Orchestra, Beijing Ballet, the Central Conservatory Philharmonic, the Pacific Symphony Orchestra and the West Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra. Kun Dong has been with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra since 2002 and is a tenured member of the orchestra.

Dr. Tse-Leung is Faculty Associate at Wright State University. Born in the U.S., Tse moved to Hong Kong at an early age and began her musical studies there. She returned to the United States to continue her education in music and obtained her BM, MM, and DMA performance degrees at Temple University and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Tse has performed with her husband as a duo piano team throughout the US and abroad and in 1989, she and her husband, Dr. Jackson Leung, established a piano studio that was committed to teaching serious piano students. Their mission was to inspire and instill the highest qualities of musical learning. Their students have won numerous awards and competitions all over the world. Since 1991 Tse has been serving as a US representative for the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music.

Since 1998 this intimate chamber series has been presented at the Hayner on the last Tuesday of most months in the school year. Concert pianist Steven Aldredge will be the host. He also is a sought-after composer and an educator at Wright State University. The series is presented free to the public because of the generosity of the citizens of Troy and Hayner’s loyal sponsors. Learn more about Hayner’s cultural events at www.TroyHayner.org .